Run with the wolves
by likethephoenixfromtheashes
Summary: Ruby struggles a lot with being the wolf and makes a drastic decision, but her friend Belle doesn't accept it and fights to save her friend; will she succeed? And what happens when feelings start to get in the way... starts around 2x07, but it is kinda A/U, so be aware that I might change the order of events and some facts
1. Chapter 1

Title: Run with the wolves  
Fandom: Once upon a time  
Pairing: Red/Ruby & Belle

Spoilers: starts around 2x07, but it is kinda A/U, so be aware that I might change the order of events and some facts

_Disclaimer: OUAT and all its characters belong to Adam Horowitz, Eddy Kitsis and ABC._

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**I know some of you are hoping and waiting for an update on my other stories.**

**My deepest apologies, because I'm going to disappoint you now.**

**The thing is - I have lost my SQ spirit.**

**No, I do not have writer's block - far from it.**

**And no, it's not the fault of the show, the writers or anything OUAT related in that sense.**

**I lost it because of the fans...how some of them are constantly lashing out, attacking the cast and crew with their nonsense...it made me so sad.**

**I know it's not fair to the people, who are not like that...but that is exactly the reason why I am taking a break from writing SQ.**

**Because if I would force myself to continue my stories now...well, I think it's safe to say...I would ruin them.**

**And everyone deserves better than that and God knows how much work, time and effort I put into my stories...together with all my heart.**

**But having a litter of little baby "wolves" is quite inspirational...and that is how I came up with the idea for a Red Beauty fic and I am happy about it since I always wanted to write one.**

**Hope you will enjoy it!**

**And I promise everyone to try my hardest to get my SQ spirit back as soon as possible.**

**Much love to everyone,**

**Raven**

* * *

_**OH RIGHT!**_

_**I WANT TO DEDICATE THIS STORY TO MY DEAR FRIEND BARB.**_

_**BECAUSE OF THE WOLVES...**_

* * *

**RUN WITH THE WOLVES**  
**by Raven**

**Chapter 1 - Two beauties and one beast**

_"Listen to them: the children of the night. What sweet music they make. -Dracula"_

A last howl escaped from Ruby Lucas' lips before she fell to her knees.  
And with that the wolf within her was gone.

She had spent several hours on running after David had come to her rescue and she felt exhausted - at least physically.  
She had powered herself out in hopes of being able to stop the jumble her mind had become.  
Of course without any success.

Ever since the curse had been broken she felt close to insanity.

Her whole world was upside down.  
Not only had she gotten her memories back, but the realization that she was in fact freaking Red Riding Hood from the fairytale was hard to believe.  
But what was worse than all of this was the fact that she also was the wolf, that she was some sort of a monster, an untameable beast and that she had done a lot of horrible things in the past.

All these memories were haunting her since the moment Emma Swan had fulfilled her destiny and as far as Ruby was concerned the curse had not been the worst thing in her life.

But now that the truth was revealed, now that everything was out in the open, Ruby felt a certain darkness surrounding her.  
Especially since she had no control over herself.  
If it had not been for David she would be dead by now - killed by an angry mob.  
And Ruby remembered all too well how much time it had taken her, how painful it had been, back then in the Enchanted Forest, to learn how to stop herself, to get herself under control.

She did not really look forward to start from scratch, to go through the whole procedure again.  
Especially since there was another way.

And Ruby had come to the conclusion, had made the decision to go for this option.  
It was better then a life on the run and it would keep them safe - all of them.

She did not look forward to talking to her friends about her decision, but she knew that she had to say good bye.  
She owed them at least that much.

* * *

By the time she reached the well, where she had hidden her clothes, the sun was already rising, but Ruby did not care.  
Today she would not hurry to be on time for her shift, today she would take the time she needed.

She dressed quickly, but instead of heading for the diner she slid down to the ground and leaned against the well, desperate and sad that it was not in her power to change who she was.

Why did the curse have to be broken?  
Life had been okay.  
Maybe not perfect, but at least okay.

And now nothing was left of it.  
People would always be cautious around her, some would even fear her and they had every right to do so.

Sure, there were her friends, but Snow was currently stuck in the Enchanted Forest - together with Emma Swan, who happened to be not only the same age as Snow, but also her daughter and a child born out of True Love.  
Wasn't it absurd?

And God only knew if or when they would make it back to Storybrooke.

There was David, but he had to take care of Henry and she knew he was worried sick about Snow and Emma, so she did not want to burden him with more.

She still had Granny, but well - things with Granny were not always that easy and she wanted a life of her own.

And then there was Belle.  
Gold's Belle.  
Her friend Belle.

Ruby had expected that Belle would be disgusted if she ever found out what she was, but she had been completely wrong.

Belle had been worried about her safety, the scene from the library still fresh on her mind.  
How she had tried to make her leave and how Belle had wanted to stay.  
How she had tried to convince her that she was a monster and how Belle had tried to convince her from the opposite.

"No matter what you've done in your past. David sees the good in you and that tells me one thing...that it's in there. So if we all can see it. Why can't you?"

Belle had sounded so convinced, had looked at her with complete determination and yet she had not dared to believe it for a second.  
For Ruby it simply was too good to be true.  
Hell, it sounded too good to even be considered as a valid possibility.

Ruby closed her eyes and took a deep breath, knowing full well that she had not much of a choice.  
Not if she wanted to protect her family and friends, not if she wanted to keep them safe.  
Because she knew that there was a fair chance that she would snap again, that she would kill again and she could not risk it.  
Not this time.

"I hoped that I would find you here..."

The familiar voice and accent made Ruby jump.  
Belle.

How had she not heard her coming? Especially with her wolf instincts back to full force.  
Had she really been that caught up in her thoughts? Was that even possible?  
Obviously.

"What are you doing here?"  
She looked up to meet Belle's eyes and Ruby noticed the worried expression on her friend's face, "Is something wrong?"

"I've been looking for you. I wanted to make sure that you were...well...okay", Belle answered and sat down next to her.

"I'm good", Ruby lied, wondering if Belle would be able to see right through it, "I've been thinking..."

"About what?"  
If Belle had recognized the lie she did not let it show, but she seemed to sense that something was off.

"About Storybrooke, about the curse, about my friends...about the fact that I am a monster."

"You are not a monster!" Belle countered fiercely, "You can't change who you are, Ruby. But you can learn to accept it, to control it. David told me you did it before...you can do it again."

"It's not that easy! We are not in freaking Fairytale Land anymore...and even back there it was not easy. I could easily kill someone in the process of learning everything again. I've done it before. I ate my boyfriend. I killed my True Love. You still have a chance with yours, Belle. But I don't have anything...I am afraid that I will hurt someone again...someone I care about. Since the curse broke I try to avoide everyone...because I am scared. I had my Happy Ending and I ruined it...I ate him! I fucking ate my boyfriend! There is no more beauty to my beast. It's just me...forever."

Ruby got up, not able to stand the situation any longer, but Belle grabbed her arm and made her stop,"There is still good inside of you...there is still beauty inside of you. I know that...I can see it clear as day."

"How I wish that was true, Belle...you have no idea. But I am not you. I don't believe in anything anymore..."

"So, what do you want to do?"  
The horror in Belle's voice was unmistakable.

"I'll cross town line. And I will leave Storybrooke. Without magic there is no wolf. And without my memories there is no more pain."

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_A/N: The quote in the beginning is taken from the movie "Dracula" by Francis Ford Coppola_


	2. Chapter 2

**RUN WITH THE WOLVES  
Chapter 2 - Instincts**

"Ruby, no! You can' t do that. You can't leave. I won't accept it."

The leggy brunette looked at her friend one last time, sadness shining in her eyes, "It's my decision. And if you are my friend...you'll let me go."  
That said Ruby pulled her hand away and headed off, disappearing into the woods only a second later, leaving a shocked and confused Belle behind.

* * *

Belle was pacing around in Gold's apartment, waiting for him to come upstairs.

Ruby's words were repeating on her mind, but she refused to give in to them.

'_And if you are my friend...you'll let me go.'_

But she couldn't.  
Belle simply could not bring herself to let Ruby do this to herself.  
There had to be another way.

She understood Ruby's fear, got that her friend did not want to hurt anyone again, but she would not allow that Ruby left Storybrooke, that she would forget everything she was and had always been.

Because Belle saw the leggy waitress for who she was - the human and the wolf.  
And that wolf inside of Ruby might be a beast, but that did nothing to taint the beauty of Ruby's soul.  
At least not as far as Belle was concerned.

It had always been her "thing" to reveal the beauty of the darkest souls, it had always come natural to Belle.  
Like an instinct.

She had come so close to taming the beast within Rumplestiltskin, so close.  
This time she would not fail.  
She would help Ruby tame hers.

Because Belle did not want to lose another person to the dark side, especially not since Ruby was her friend and she cared about her.

As Ruby had always cared about her - from the very beginning.  
The waitress had watched out for her from the moment they had met, she had always supported her and Belle would not give up on Ruby now.  
Not ever in fact.

* * *

Somewhen in the afternoon David had received an alarming phone call from Mister Gold - Belle was missing.  
Again.

He sighed heavily, wondering if there would ever be a quiet minute in this godforsaken town, because he really needed some time to think.  
He needed to come up with a plan to get Snow and his daughter back.

Why Emma had saved Regina again was beyond him, but then again she was their daughter.  
Probably she saw something in Regina nobody else was able to see.  
Like Snow always had seen the good in Red - when everyone else had just called her a monster.

Red.  
Ruby.  
Who was she now?  
Did it matter?

The point was that Ruby had gotten her instincts back - wolf instincts.  
She had found Belle before, she could do it again.

"Henry, do you feel up staying with Regina for a bit?"  
David knew trusting her was risky, but he did not want to leave Henry all to himself. The boy clearly was struggling with the recent events and Regina had always taken good care of him, right?

"Uhm...sure. Why?"  
The boy looked at him, a surprised expression on his face.

"Because I have to talk to Ruby and I don't know how long it will take", David replied, keeping the act that Belle was missing again, to himself. His grandson needed a break from all the craziness.

"Should I pack an overnight bag? Probably I can talk Mom into cooking lasagna..."

Henry and Charming froze at the boy referring to Regina as 'Mom', but that's what she was, wasn't she? She still was his mom.  
And deep down Henry missed her - at least a little. Evil Queen or not, Regina had always tried to do right by him, in her own weird way. But she simply did not know better and Henry had learned that during the last months.  
She truly did not know how to love very well.  
"I guess she is really lonely at the moment..."

"I think you are right, Henry. And once Emma and Snow are back we have to figure something out...this whole war has been going on for way too long", David stated matter-of-factly.

"Do you really believe that she can be better?" Henry eyed David expectantly.

"I hope so, I really do."

* * *

Regina had been truly surprised, shocked even, to find David and Henry on her porch, but she had been thrilled when she had heard that her son intended to stay the night.

Henry had stormed upstairs right away, claiming that he had to finish his homework and David had filled her in on the recent events.  
Why was beyond her, but she had let him speak anyway.

A certain feeling of guilt that Emma was stuck in the Enchanted Forest spread in her chest, much to her own surprise, because Regina would have never expected that it would affect her so much.  
Snow's fate on the other hand - she could not care less.  
But on the other hand they had risked their lives to save hers - even after everything that had happened and Regina respected that. Kind of.

"I have to figure something out to bring them back. Henry needs them. But first I have to find Belle. And help Ruby deal with...you know...the wolf", David ended his speech.

"Maybe I could help."  
The words were out of Regina's mouth before she could stop herself, causing David's eyes to widen, "Maybe. But that doesn't mean you will."

"Just this once."  
The brunette stated and Charming nodded in understanding.

* * *

Ruby sat in her car, heading towards the town line, eager to get away, when her cell phone rang.  
She thought about ignoring it, but when she caught sight of David's name on the screen she picked up anyway.  
Maybe Henry needed help. Or Snow and Emma.  
Probably all of them.

"Ruby...you have to meet me at the station in ten. I need to track someone..."

"Who's missing?"

"Belle."

* * *

Ruby was rushing through the woods, following Belle's scent, following the lead of her instincts, David right behind her.

When they caught sight of Gold's cabin a growl escaped Ruby's lips, "If he did anything to..."

"Ruby, relax. I'm sure Belle is fine...there has to be an explanation..." David tried to calm her down, gasping for air all the way.

But Ruby did not pay attention and shot forward, pulling the door open in a strong motion, just to stop dead in her tracks, "What the hell is going on?!"

Once David had caught up and saw what Ruby was staring at in disbelief, he raised his own eyebrows in confusion.  
Belle was sitting in the cabin with a cup of tea, reading a book, smiling sweetly.

"Belle, what are you doing here? We've been worried about you", Charming announced after a while, aware that Ruby had a hard time getting her anger under control.

"I needed to see Ruby before she could do something stupid...and I knew that she would never show up if I would have asked. She is too determinded to leave..."

"Leave?!" David looked from Belle to Ruby and back.

"It's the only way!" the leggy brunette finally snapped.

"No, it's not!" Belle countered fiercely, "Just hear me out...because I have a suggestion to make..."

* * *

Belle was pacing around nervously, waiting for a reaction from Ruby.  
Her friend had to listen to her, she had to agree to this.  
It could work, Belle knew it would.

Rumple had not been thrilled when she had demanded the keys to the cabin from him, but she had reminded him that he had promised to treat her better this time.  
Since she had gained her memory back she was struggling with the fact that she was with him, that he was supposed to be her True Love.

Because truth be told, that while Belle could remember everything, she did not feel it anymore.  
In fact she did not feel anything.

But her feelings probably would come back like her memory had, right?  
At least that was what she was telling herself.  
She would deal with all of that later, because for now she had to save Ruby - from herself.

"You have two minutes", Ruby gave in all of a sudden and Belle sighed in relief.

Taking a deep breath she turned to face Ruby and David and then she started to explain what she thought was a good plan, "So, Rumple agreed that you could stay in the cabin for a while. And I thought...that we could build a cage or something to lock you up...you know...around full moon...till you are able to controll yourself again. That way you would not put anyone in danger and you could have all the time you need...to learn everything from scratch."

"That's a great idea, Belle", David agreed with an enthusiastic nod.

"What am I supposed to do out here...all by myself. For months?" Ruby did not seem convinced. Not at all.

"I would come visit you whenever you wat. And Granny could come here too", Belle countered quickly.

"Or me. And Snow once she is back...you know that she will never forgive you...and me...if I would let you leave without a fight", Charming added, "You can do it, Ruby. I know you can."

"Why would you do this for me? Burden yourself with all of this?"  
Ruby started to panic. She wanted to run. Run as far away as she could.

And Belle obviously noticed it, because she stepped forward and grabbed Ruby's hand, squeezing it reassuringly, "Because we are your friends and we love you. I know your instincts tell you to run. That's what wolves do. But what do you want? The human part of you...what does your heart tell you?"

"That...that I should stay", Ruby answered, sounding defeated.

"Then stay..."  
Belle's voice was so unbelievable soft and firm at the same time.

"I could build you a cage...I'm sure Sean would help me", David added, "And maybe Regina knows a spell that will prevent you from leaving it when you are a wolf."

"And how do you plan on convincing Regina Mills to help us?" Ruby frowned.

"No convincing needed. She already offered her help."  
David had to chuckle at the shocked expressions on Belle's and Ruby's face, "So, what do you say? Want to give this a try?"

Ruby hesitated for a while, but in the end she nodded her agreement, "Yeah, I think we can at least try."


End file.
